Northwest Music News – 14 Aug: Kepla, Doctrines + more

Kepla releases new video

Liverpool-based producer and part of the Deep Hedonia collective, Kepla is preparing for a busy few weeks. September sees a number of dates supporting drone master William Basinski around the UK, after his involvement in Happy Jug on 27 Aug at 24 Kitchen Street, where he'll be soundtracking the Syndrome-produced play, described as being "a post-human drama about brain trauma, thing theory and the general election."

First though comes this new video for Ordinant 6 – put together by John Barraclough – which is part of outsider label No Pain In Pop's The Bedroom Club III, out 21 Aug. With Karen Gwyer and Forest Swords project Dyymond of Durham on previous comps, the Bedroom Compilation series has become a fascinating snapshot in documenting the processes of some of the most forward-thinking and far-reaching electronic artists around, and Ordinant 6 certainly fits right at home within the new comp's remit of presenting "work of acts who use isolation as an escape hatch into vaster internal realms."

New music from Doctrines

Manchester punks Doctrines released one of the most enjoyable unbridled rock records of recent times from around these parts in 2013, with the Superchunk-reminiscent Anx coming out on Alcopop! Records. New material from them has been scarce since, despite continuing to rip through house parties and club venues within Manchester. However, earlier this week Alcopop! premiered Melt, one of two tracks from the band that'll appear on a split release between the pop punk label and Dog Knight and also feature Johnny Foreigner, Doe and Playlounge.

Melt sees the group on slightly mellower plains than the brash-mouthed exuberance of two years ago, vocalist (and producer) Jamie Birkett sighingly melodic as he laments slipping into pre-destined roles and the feeling of rehashing the same ideas. The track's not embeddable but you can give it a stream here.

Manchester-based producer Deadbear decamps to Berlin, releases new single

Initially making ripples with the Wabi Sabi EP on Art Is Hard Records in 2013, Nick Donovan aka Deadbear has enjoyed a fruitful two years in Manchester, including remixing recent Dutch Uncles single Upsilon as well as fellow Memphis Industry signings Barbarossa. Donovan has very recently taken the ever-popular decision to switch to Berlin however, to coincide with his latest single, which has found a home on New York label CSCN. Both sides – the Qrion-featuring Tongues and Oo Oo – once again play to Deadbear's usual strengths, affecting a cut-and-paste, cluttered array of samples and beats that paradoxically create the sense of a gracefully linear journey, although the latter takes a breathtaking twist towards its climax.

Digital Crate Digging

Dawn Ray'd — Cauldron of Rebirth (Moment of Collapse Records/self-released)

We were sad to discover that fierce Liverpool DIY screamos We Came Out Like Tigers had split last year, the brutally uncompromising group having consistently proved themselves an incredibly vital part of the music scene, as our interview with them last year attested. Excellent news then comes with the impending release of the A Thorn, A Blight EP by Dawn Ray'd, whose members include ...Tigers chief lyricists, vocalist and violinist Simon Barr and guitarist Fabian Devlin. In even more excellent news, the group have revealed their track from it, Cauldron of Rebirth. It's as powerfully an emotive listen as their old group's previous material ever was, Devlin's guitars beefed up to vein-popping muscularity, which makes for an even starker descent between the track's righteous peak to the delicacy of its final despair.

Elsewhere on The Skinny.co.uk

• We caught site of Dean Wareham's legendary Luna at Gorilla. Read Gary Kaill's thoughts here.
• The life of Gil Scott-Heron is to be celebrated at Liverpool International Music Festival. We caught up with the people behind The Revolution Will Be Live.